WOW...this is COOL....

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BabyRider
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Joined: Sun Jan 02, 2005 1:00 pm

WOW...this is COOL....

Post by BabyRider »

I'm not into drag racing, but when I came across this, the stats are amazing:



One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more horsepower than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.



* Under full throttle, a Top Fuel dragster engine consumes 11.2 gallons of nitro methane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the same rate with 25% less energy being produced.



* A stock Dodge 426 Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive the dragster's supercharger.



* With 3000 CFM of air being rammed in by the supercharger on overdrive, the fuel mixture is compressed into a near-solid form before ignition. Cylinders run on the verge of hydraulic lock at full throttle.



*At the stoichiometric 1.7:1 air/fuel mixture for nitro methane the flame front temperature measures 7050 degrees F ( 3900 degrees C ).



* Nitromethane burns yellow. The spectacular white flame seen above the stacks at night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from atmospheric water vapour by the searing exhaust gases.



* Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the output of an arc welder in each cylinder.



* Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After 1/2 way, the engine is dieseling from compression plus the glow of exhaust valves at 1400 degrees F. The engine can only be shut down by cutting the fuel flow.



* If spark momentarily fails early in the run, unburned nitro builds up in the affected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to blow cylinder heads off the block in pieces or split the block in half.



* In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds dragsters must accelerate at an average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph well before half-track, the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.



* Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed reading this sentence.



* Top Fuel Engines turn approximately 540 RPM's from light to light! but stop & ponder the fact that the engine is only used for apx 4 to 5 seconds.



* Including the burnout the engine must only survive 900 revolutions under load.



* The red-line is actually quite high at 9500 rpm.



* The Bottom Line; Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew worked for free, and for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000.00 per second. The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds for the quarter mile 10/05/03, (Tony Shumacher).



The top speed record is 333.00 mph (533 km/h) as measured over the last 66' of the run (09/28/03 Doug Kalitta).



*Putting all of this into perspective:



You are riding the average $25,000 Honda MotoGP bike. Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have the advantage of a flying start.



You run the RC211V hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an honest 200 mph (293 ft/sec). The tree' goes green for both of you at that moment. The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your wrist cranked hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums and within 3 seconds the dragster catches and passes you.



He beats you to the finish line, a quarter mile away from where you just passed him. Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200 mph and not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed you within a mere 1320 foot long race course.



That, folks, is acceleration
[FONT=Arial Black]I hope you cherish this sweet way of life, and I hope you know that it comes with a price.
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Bullet's trial was a farce. Can I get an AMEN?????


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Bryn Mawr
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WOW...this is COOL....

Post by Bryn Mawr »

A stock Dodge 426 Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive the dragster's supercharger



That's what puts it into perspective for me!

Awsome

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Sheryl
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Joined: Mon Feb 28, 2005 3:08 am

WOW...this is COOL....

Post by Sheryl »

I would love to be a passanger in one of those during a run. I love drag racing, the adreniline rush you get when the staging lights hit green and then your thrown against the seat with force. Oh yea so much fun. :D

Hubby has a 67 Firebird that's a hunk of junk, but purrs like a kitten. Every now and then he'll let me take it out to Zoo road and lay down some rubber. :sneaky:
"Girls are crazy! I'm not ever getting married, I can make my own sandwiches!"

my son
onovakind67
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Joined: Sun Jun 11, 2006 9:29 am

WOW...this is COOL....

Post by onovakind67 »

This might be a lesson in acceleration, but it's not much of a math lesson.

If my bike averages 200 mph for the quarter mile, I will cross the finish line 4.5 seconds after leaving the starting line. If the dragster runs a 4.49 it will beat me by about 3 feet, not catch me in 3 seconds.

If, by chance I can accelerate another 10 mph and average 205 mph for the quarter, I'll be crossing the finish line about 4.39 nseconds, well ahead of the NHRA's fastest. The dragster will make a lot of noise when it comes by, but he'll lose anyway.
K.Snyder
Posts: 10253
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2005 2:05 pm

WOW...this is COOL....

Post by K.Snyder »

onovakind67 wrote: This might be a lesson in acceleration, but it's not much of a math lesson.

If my bike averages 200 mph for the quarter mile, I will cross the finish line 4.5 seconds after leaving the starting line. If the dragster runs a 4.49 it will beat me by about 3 feet, not catch me in 3 seconds.

If, by chance I can accelerate another 10 mph and average 205 mph for the quarter, I'll be crossing the finish line about 4.39 nseconds, well ahead of the NHRA's fastest. The dragster will make a lot of noise when it comes by, but he'll lose anyway.


Yeah....

now try all that while going around in a circle, competing against 43 other drivers.....

then it gets fun. ;)

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woppy71
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Joined: Mon Apr 03, 2006 1:11 pm

WOW...this is COOL....

Post by woppy71 »

Wow!!

Now stick that motor on two wheels and I'll be ready to meet my maker!!!!!! Weeeeeeeeeee........!!!!!:):):wah::wah:

Behaviour breeds behaviour - treat people how you would like to be treated yourself
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